In talks

It's always pleasant to attend events featuring black authors--that aren't in February. To kick off Durham's 31st annual Bimbé Festival (May 27-28), Barnes & Noble at New Hope Commons is inviting noted NYU journalism professor and writer David J. Dent to discuss his book, In Search of Black America, on Tuesday, May 2, 2000. Dent, who has written for Vibe, Playboy and The Washington Post, spent almost five years on the road looking for the heart of African-America. He found it in all the usual places, like historically black colleges, and others that just don't come to mind, like bowling alleys. To find out more unexpected locales of his odyssey, show up at 7:30 p.m. and bring a book for signing. Call 489-3012 for information about this and other programs in B&N's special Bimbé Books series.--Cynthia R. Greenlee

Changing identities from prisoner to displaced person, many Holocaust survivors languished in German DP camps following their liberation in 1945. Visiting scholar Miriam Isaacs was born in one such camp and will come to the Beth El Synagogue on May 1 to speak about the cultural life and writings of displaced persons. Her 7:30 p.m. talk, The Dispossessed Write: Yiddish Publications in Displaced Persons Camps, will focus on the more than 150 newspapers, periodicals and books that were published by the homeless, stateless and traumatized population between 1945 and 1952. For more details, call 286-3628.